
David Crosthwait
1891 ~ 1976
Electrical and
Mechanical Engineer
For his outstanding
contributions to engineering technology, David Crosthwait was awarded an
honorary doctoral degree in 1975 from Purdue University, the same school that
had awarded him a B.S. in mechanical engineering 62 years earlier. In the
years between, he had received 34 U.S. patents and 80 foreign patents relating
to the design, installation, testing, and servicing of power plants and heating
and ventilating systems.
Crosthwait worked
for the Dunham Company of Chicago during much of his career and headed its
research laboratory in Marshalltown, Iowa. Later he served as technical
advisor to the company.
An authority on heat
transfer, ventilation, and air conditioning, Crosthwait invented several new
systems. He developed the control systems and the variable vacuum system
of heating for major buildings including Rockefeller Center in New York
City. His writings included a manual on heating and cooling with water and
guides, standards and codes dealing with heating ventilation, refrigeration, and
air conditioning.
After retiring from
industry in 1969, Crosthwait continued to share his knowledge by teaching a
course on steam heating theory and controls at Purdue.